DSS Arrests Mastermind of Kogi Explosion

The bomber who set off the explosion close to Ohinoyi of Ebiraland’s palace in Kogi State has been taken into custody by the Department of State Service.

On December 29, 2022, the explosion took place just before President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) was about to dedicate a constructed project in the state.

According to reports, at least four people perished in the incident.

According to a statement released on Wednesday by Peter Afunanya, the DSS National Headquarters’ public relations officer, the agency detained Abdulmumin Otaru, alias Abu Mikdad, and one of his colleagues, Saidu Suleiman, on Tuesday.

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He added that Otaru is being treated at an unnamed medical facility after being wounded in the left foot while attempting to flee.

The Department of State Services released the following statement to the public: “The Department of State Services wishes to inform the public that it has apprehended the perpetrator of the vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attack that took place on December 29, 2022, close to the Palace of the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland in Okene, Kogi State, during the visit of the President to commission some projects.

“On January 3, 2023, the Service detained Abdulmumin Ibrahim Otaru (also known as Abu Mikdad) and Saidu SULEIMAN, one of his friends. Otaru was wounded on his left foot while attempting to flee, suffering a bullet wound. At the moment, he is undergoing treatment in a hospital.

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According to Afunanya, the service’s investigations showed that Otaru is an ISWAP commander and had connections to lethal attacks in the state as well as the invasion of the Kuje detention facility.

Investigations revealed that Otaru was a high-ranking member of the Islamic State West Africa Province who either organized or participated in the following heinous activities:

i. The attack on the Nigeria Police Area Command, located in the Kogi State LGA’s Eika-Ohizenyi, on June 24, 2022. Idris Musa, a police inspector, was slain in that incident, and two AK-47 firearms were taken away;

ii. The Kuje Medium Security Custodial Center attack on July 5, 2022, in the Kuje Area Council of the FCT; and

iii. On August 5, 2022, three Indian expatriates were abducted during an attack on West African Ceramics Ltd in Ajaokuta LGA, Kogi. One Indian, two police officers, and two company drivers were among the five people who perished in the incident. The kidnapped foreign nationals were freed on August 31, 2022.

In and around Kogi State, Otaru ran terrorist cells. He and his gang had also carried out a number of kidnapping operations in the states of Ondo and Kogi. The statement said, “The suspects are already in custody and will face the appropriate charges.

However, he said that the service was assiduously collaborating with stakeholders, such as sister security agencies, to combat the threat of terrorism and other criminal activity as well as risks to the country’s security.